the diff. between marijuana and hemp?

I was curious about the difference between marijuana and hemp. I know they're not the same thing, but I've been confused by some of the things I've read. Is hemp the male plant and marijuana the female plant, or are they just two different plants containing both sexes?

 

google is your best friend

 

Marijuana is a plant. Hemp is a type of fiber derived from Cannabis Sativa as well as a number of other plants. Although I think in the past 50 year's there has become one particular variety from which it is derived.

 

both are marijuana and hemp are forms of cannabis. marijuana plants produce THC is their flowers, which is what we all smoke. hemp, on the other hand, produces almost no THC, which makes it useless for recreational purposes however it is still very useful for producing hemp related products (paper, clothes, etc).

 

i was under the impression that they are indeed derived from the same plant. usually sativa is used for hemp, because indica tends to be a shorter plant. the flowers/ buds contain the usable thc, the main stalk is used for hemp. sativa is better because the fibers are longer, which makes them easier to spin.

you have to rett the cannabis stalks in water, until the pith rots out. then you can break the fibers apart, and spin them into cording. same type of process for using flax. im planning to request some stalks from a friend and try out some cord making of my own actually.

http://www.allfiberarts.com/library/aa97/aa072397.htm
http://www.joyofhandspinning.com/flax.shtml

so to answer your question, the difference is the part of the plant, and the preparation. buds are dried/ cured, stalks are retted, pounded, spun into cording.

 

Well, that's kind of why I was wondering. I know the male plant produces very low levels of THC, making the female ideal for smoking because it produces greater amounts of THC. But is the male plant used for hemp, or is hemp produced from a different variety of cannibis than is used for smoking?

 

In the non fiction books section I put up a link to wagners chemical technology on google books. written back in 1872. It lists the various plant sources for hemp back in the day, cannabis sativa being one of them. forget if it mentioned male or female specifically but you could check easy enough. Cool book to page through. Free too.

 

either male or female can be used for hemp (main stalk of the plant)

the main varieties of cannabis are sativa and indica, most weed is a blend of the two

in relation to hemp, the sativa is preferred because it grows taller, so you get strands of fiber that are very long, and therefore easier to join together into cording. the buds are just as smokeable on a plant that will become hemp as on one thats tossed in the trash.